A/N: Post 4x03

I am working on a multi-chapter fic right now (nothing remotely close to Sorcery, but a longer dose of Waiginess), but I just rewatched 4x03, and it sparked this idea and it needed to be written. I loved so many of the Waige moments in this episode. Ugh, that side hug with the temple kiss at the end, the hand holding on the couch. Just peel me off the floor cause I cant take it. (Yknow, before the writers decided to destroy our beloved Waige with stupid crap.) They deserved better. I demand a redo.

I know when Walter is discussing baby names with Happy, he says they havent discussed it. I'm choosing to ignore that fact. (just like the writers ignored so many Waige facts while writing season 4).

Watching her watch Jane on the television, reflecting on the events of the weekend, the fierce protectiveness she had displayed with Ralph fancying Sly'snew intern... Well, the thought hit him again, and it wouldn't go away.

He wanted to be a father.

Not just any father. But a father to a child that had Paige as a mother.

The thought had been assaulting him all throughout the trip, but now, he couldn't shake it.

Of course, he had Ralph, and he would never discount his love and bond with the boy. Ralph was viewed as his son as much as was humanly possible, but it was different. Like Cabe to him. Fatherly role, but not the actual father. He wasn't there for Ralph's birth. He didn't know his first word. He wasn't at every first of his younger years. Didn't know if he went through a phase of only eating white foods. Sure, he was there for all of the firsts since meeting him, and would continue to do so, but, at the end of the day Ralph was Paige's son, and he was an outsider to that. Despite Drew being nothing more than a parasite, he was Ralph's father, like it or not. Sure, he only called once a year and hadn't contributed to his upbringing in anyway, but, he still contributed to his conception. A fact that pestered Walter constantly. Ralph was Walter's son in every way that counted, and he hoped, someday, would be his son legally, but for, he wasn't, and even with his intellect, he didnt see it possible to invent a time machine and get those first nine years he missed.

But seeing Paige go full mama-bear in the savanna to save that baby dear had been enthralling. It had made him think of things he had never considered even a possibility before. He had only once before thought of Paige pregnant, when they had infiltrated the United Nations, and the thought had been overwhelming, oddly captivating, and even a bit disheartening since they weren't together, but mostly it had been overwhelming. But today, seeing her appearing pregnant when she stuffed the fawn in her blouse, it hadn't overwhelmed him, it had excited him.

He wanted all of the firsts. With her.

He wanted to see Paige pregnant. With his child.

Being a dad to a child of his own had always seemed so far fetched, so out of reach, so impossible. He had feared the idea if for no other reason than he knew he wouldn't be able to connect to a child, leaving his child to view him much the same way that he viewed his own father. Until Paige came along. Until Ralph came along. Connecting with Ralph had been instantaneous. He had made some errors along the way (no more dark web unsupervised), but from what he'd heard Toby and Paige say, so have most parents. But the love was there with Ralph. It was never in question. Things with Paige had never been simple, but his love for her had never once waned, even when he wanted it to. She had taught him how to open his heart, how to love, how to see more to life than work and intellect. Sure, he wasn't ready for a baby today, and they were still in the early stages of their relationship, but someday, he would want that with her.

He just didn't know how to ask her if that was something she wanted.

She had been a single mom for twelve years. (He didn't care that Drew was technically present for two of them, even then she was doing things alone while he did whatever suited him). She was nearing her mid-thirties, and her son was nearing his teenage years. It would be understandable if she didn't want to have another baby, to start over with diapers and middle of the night feedings. He would understand, and accept that, but it would be nice if she wanted a baby someday, too.

He must have been abnormally quiet while he was lost in his thoughts, driving them all back to Paige's condo for the night. He could hear her talking to him, and could even hear himself responding, heard Ralph head off to take a shower, but he wasn't truly registering any of it. Autopilot was on.

He enjoyed being there with them, in her home. One of the best parts of them finally being a couple was being a part of their little family unit. Making dinner together, saying goodnight to Ralph, watching movies on the sofa with Paige after and talking about everything and nothing. Doing the dishes and taking out the trash. Going over Ralph's homework. Just the basics of life, but it felt different being there with them. Most of all, he loved having her curl up with him in bed. He loved other things in bed with her as well, of course, but the feel of her snuggling against him as she slept was the ultimate 'you made it' moment for him, after three years of trying and failing to find a way to be with her.

His thoughts had consumed him tonight though, and he was certain she knew it as she placed her hand on his shoulder where he sat on the sofa, handing him a glass of water - the only thing he typically drank.

"Hey. You okay? You seem... off." Her voice was like honey, sweet and smooth, laden with just enough concern to remind him how much she cares.

"Oh, um. Yeah. Sorry. Just deep in thought." He physically shook his head in an act to free his mind of the thoughts rattling around in his skull, and gave her a warm smile.

"Is it Cabe? I told you, you can talk to me."

Another thing he loved about being here, and being with her was how she would sit right next to him on the couch, pull her legs up beside her, and rest her head on his shoulder. He had been tracking this progression, and he was certain it was instinctual at this point. His own reflex to her was also becoming an instinct as well, wrapping his arm around her and running his fingers over her arm, placing a kiss to get temple or the top of her head. Even when she stood beside him, he found himself wrapping his arm around her and kissing her temple. It felt so natural, like he had been born to do it.

"No, no. Not Cabe. I mean, I am worried about him, of course. But no. I was thinking about the case, the uh, deer... Jane, and her uh, baby." Her face twisted into what he could only describe as adoration, finding him lovable for thinking of the deer. "I, uh, was very impressed by you. If it weren't for you, that fawn wouldn't have survived. You showed remarkable mothering instincts."

"Oh, well, thank you, Walter. But we did it as a team. She's alive because we work so well together, all of us."

The next thing he loved, was how she would pull his chin so she could kiss him. He would happily kiss her all day long if he could.

"I know, but we wouldn't have even attempted it if it weren't for your...uh, encouragement."

"Oh, are you deep in thought about seeing me naked?" She teased with a chuckle, making him turn a deep shade of red.

"No! No. Nothing like that. I mean, yes, it was very... motivating to get the job started. But, no. I was thinking of you... as a... mother."

"You see me as a mother everyday, Walter." His brain scrambled on how to broach the topic further, but froze, his face stuck in a state of perplexity. "Ohhh. You mean, a mother... again." Her words were drawn out, but her tone was soft. He didn't know how to interpret that. He briefly panicked, worried this was a way-too-soon conversation, but the way she laced her fingers with his and leaned back into the couch instead of tensing and running for the hills, told him it was okay.

"Well, um, yes. It was fascinating to see you in that role, and it got me thinking. You've never really said if that was something you wanted for your future. You mentioned once a while ago that you had wanted to give Ralph a sibling when he was younger. I guess I was just... curious... if that was something you, um, wanted. Having another baby." Her eyebrows raised at his question, obviously not expecting it. Panic set in, and he quickly backpeddled. If there was an olympic sport for backpeddling in a conversation with Paige, he would surely take the gold. "You don't have to answer. I was just curious because of the case is all--"

"Walter, relax. It's a perfectly reasonable thing to ask in a relationship." He looked down at her to see a comforting smile, and reassuring eyes.

"It is? I just, well, I I I, uh, I have no frame of reference."

"Yes, Walter, it is. You can't have a relationship during child-rearing years succeed if you're not on the same page with what the expectations are for that." He nodded his agreement to her point. "I guess I'm not sure. I always wanted a big family, but then it was just Ralph and I for so long, I sort of accepted that it likely wouldn't be in the cards for me. There's a freedom in having Ralph so independent now, that the idea of starting over is a bit overwhelming, but, if I knew I wasn't doing it alone again, yeah, I guess I would want that. But I'm also more than happy with what I have, so I wouldn't be upset if it didn't happen either. Like I said, I had already accepted it."

"That makes sense." He mulled it for a moment, and could feel her eyes watching him as he did.

He may not be advanced at emotional issues, but he was very advanced at Paige. He could tell she had wanted to say yes, but was worried he didn't want that same path, and it would lead them to an impass in their relationship.

"Is that something you envision for your future? Having a baby?" Her voice, despite her best efforts, was shaky and unsure. He knew he would need to not mess up his answer.

"It wasn't." He could sense the letdown she immediately felt. Turning his body some so he could look her straight on, he shrugged. "Until I met you."

"Walter..." He was sure she felt he would give her a child even if he didn't want one just to make her happy, and he wanted to be clear up front.

"Paige, until you, there was never a possibility. I would have failed whatever child came to be, and the idea of being attached to a partner for a child's lifetime was... not appealing. So, like you, I had accepted it as not being in the cards. But then I met this beautiful, smart, compassionate waitress and her amazing son, and they turned my entire world upside down, making me question everything I knew. I could actually see myself being a father." She smiled sweetly, and rubbed his cheek. "When, uh, when Megan died, I overheard my father make a comment to my mother about how they would never have grandchildren, that their family line would end, and that had struck me in a way that prior to you, wouldn't have even phased me. I would have seen it as trivial. I realized later it wasn't that they had accepted I wouldn't have children that had upset me. It was simply the idea of not having children. And well, twice now you've helped me prove to my parents that their assumptions about me are incorrect, so, having a child would just be one more way." She chuckled, but her eyes were glistening.

"You want to have a baby to one-up your parents." She said it so dryly he couldn't stop the laugh that escaped him.

"Well, when you put it like that..." She laughed with him, and he tightened his hold around her. "Seeing you with that deer under your shirt, I saw a future that I didn't think was possible. It uh, didn't scare me, which was... odd."

"Walter O'Brien... planning a future, not afraid of big conversations like having children... look how far you've come. I'm really proud of you." She smiled, placing her hand on his cheek, before placing a kiss to his other. "So, just to clarify, because you sometimes talk around things. Are you asking me if we can have a baby? Like... now?"

"Oh! No. Not now. Just... someday."

"Okay... Phew. I don't think we are ready for a baby, just yet." She visibly relaxed and he internally kicked himself for not being clearer. "Walter, I would love to have a baby with you. Lots of babies. Someday." She giggled against his lips as she kissed him. "How about after Ralph goes to bed, you and I also go to bed... and practice? For someday..."

His eyebrows rose and he could feel the hairs at the back of his neck rise in anticipation.

"I think that plan is most efficient."

"You'll be an amazing father, Walter."

Someday.

He would be a dad someday.

And he would love every moment of it.

In the meantime, he would enjoy every minute of practicing.